Flossie Rocks Ruthin

How good it was to have finally got Flossie Malavialle to Ruthin AllStyles.

And what a great night.

Performing before a capacity audience, this fabulous French folk singer thoroughly entertained us with an multifaceted collection of covers, with songs from the likes of The Beatles, Édith Piaf, Vin Garbutt and Kieran Halpin, all topped off with some good old Country Rock in the shape of “Girls Night Out” by Brent Maher.

The songs were diverse so that there was something for everybody, but at the same time, dovetailed in a way that they flowed like a well thought-out album.

Not only does she have a beautiful singing voice and effortless guitar style, Flossie is above all, a great entertainer. In that unique and fascinating Franco-Geordie accent of hers, she gave us an insight to the songs, and tales about her life and musical journey, satisfying her fans, some of whom had travelled many miles, and captivating the brand new fan-base that she was forging tonight.

I was so pleased when, early on in the evening, Flossie sang one of my personal favourites, “Luka” by Suzanne Vega, which always brings a lump to my throat.

A good half of the audience was made up of club regulars, a number of whom performed a song each at the start of the evening, armed with an array of instruments from guitars to mandolins to border bagpipes. And it was a huge thrill for me to have the lovely Flossie alongside me harmonising as I tackled Simon & Garfunkel’s “Sound of Silence”.

Before we knew it, finale time was heralded with Flossie’s version of “Til There Was You”. Then for an encore, her guitar remained on its stand as she had everyone in the room to join in, singing, clapping and stomping along to her fabulous a cappella rendition of Janis Joplin’s “Mercedes Benz”.

Home time, and it was our guest performer who faced the longest journey. I could never get my head around why anyone would want to emigrate from the Mediterranean climes of Nimes to live on the southern slopes of Newcastle upon Tyne! But I’m sure glad she did, because the contemporary British folk scene is all the richer for it.